Regulation (EU) 2023/2675 on the protection of the Union and its Member States from economic coercion by third countries

What it is

to present a new tool to counteract third countries’ economic coercion of the Union or a Member State. PROPOSED ACT: Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council. ROLE OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT: the European Parliament decides in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure and on an equal footing with the Council. BACKGROUND: economic coercion refers to a situation where a third country is seeking to pressure the Union or a Member State into making a particular choice by applying, or threatening to apply, measures affecting trade or investment. Such practices unduly interfere with the legitimate policymaking space of the EU and its Member States and undermine the EU's open strategic autonomy. The Committee on International Trade adopted the report by Bernd LANGE (S&D, DE) on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the protection of the Union and its Member States from economic coercion by third countries. The committee responsible recommended that the European Parliament's position adopted at first reading under the ordinary legislative procedure should amend the proposal as follows: Members proposed that the Regulation should lay down rules and procedures in order to ensure the effective protection of the interests of the Union and its Member States where a third country seeks, through any form of action, failure to act or threat thereof affecting trade or investment, to coerce the Union or a Member State into adopting or refraining from adopting a particular act, including a particular policy choice, legal act or a stance with regard to a policy choice. It should also provide a framework for the Union to respond in such situations with the objective of deterring , or obtaining the cessation of such actions and, where appropriate, repairing the injury caused , thereby permitting the Union to counteract such actions. Any action taken under this Regulation should be consistent with the Union’s obligations under international Members proposed that the Regulation should apply only in the event of economic coercion where a third country applies or threatens to apply measures affecting trade or investment. In determining whether the relevant conditions are met, the Commission should take into account the following: - the extent to which the third-country measure or failure to act or threat thereof encroaches upon an area of the Union’s or Member States’ sovereignty; - whether the third country is acting based on a concern that is recognised as legitimate by international law and conventions. Members proposed that the Commission should carry out the examination based on substantiated information collected on its own initiative or received from any reliable source, notably economic operators or trade unions. The European Parliament and a Member State may also provide such substantiated information to the Commission. The Commission should ensure the protection of confidential information which may include concealing the identity of the supplier of the information. The Commission should set up publicly available secure tools with a view to facilitating the submission of relevant and…

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